For some, success in the beauty industry means climbing the corporate ladder at prominent companies. For others, career worth is measured by the simple act of assisting customers and lending an ear.

One such exemplar is former Estée Lauder executive Liz Folce, current founder of Nakery Beauty. Despite an impressive career serving in executive positions with Estée Lauder, Origins, and Bobbi Brown, Folce’s most valuable experience, which set her up for success in her current entrepreneurial venture for a menopausal beauty brand, was working as a beauty advisor at the Estée Lauder makeup counter at Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco. Discerning, kind-natured and empathetic, Folce learned that listening to customers wants and needs were imperative to a mutually beneficial relationship.

“It was in that role that I learned how important it is to really listen to customers,” Folce told Happi. “Really understanding what people want out of their products, or what issues they want to resolve, isn’t just about selling something. It’s about getting to real satisfaction for each person.”

When mapping out a business model for a beauty brand that caters to the skincare, bodycare and cosmetic needs of menopausal women, one woman in a focus group admitted to evading her reflection in the bathroom mirror post-shower by wrapping herself in a towel. This insightful tidbit didn’t sit well with Folce.

“Everyone should feel confident behind closed doors; it’s where our conversations with ourselves shape our mood and our outlook,” she told Happi. “I wanted women to feel good about themselves naked.”

This hairy moment formed the springboard for Nakery Beauty.

The brand, which started in 2022, is currently raking in over $20 million in revenue with rapid monthly launches and major retail expansion across the Home Shopping Network, over 300 Ulta doors and Amazon, officials said.

Started a couple years before menopause was catapulted out of the shadows and into the spotlight by celebrity advocates from Oprah to Naomi Watts and Brooke Shields, Nakery Beauty makes personal care products to address the needs of this underserved demographic, from wrinkly skin tied to collagen decline to vaginal hydration needs.

“I was over 50 and was hearing from so many other women over 50,” said Folce. “Our bodies go through major changes post-menopause: dramatic loss of collagen, skin changes that go beyond anything we’ve ever seen on ourselves, and all kinds of body issues that impact how we feel about ourselves. There really wasn’t a brand responding to all of this. Nakery was a response to what others wanted, and I felt this obligation to answer them.”

Pro-Aging Bestsellers

For one, the brand sought to formulate skincare products designed to correct issues tied to mature skin, including dryness, dullness and sagging, from brow filler to long-wear foundation and line-smoothing lip treatments. Body care products aim to bolster quality of life issues tied to intimate dryness and boob sweat. These include the brand’s Pure Refresh Intimate Cleanser and Moisturizer. The gynecologist-tested, fragrance-free cleanser, free from glycerin and sulfate, hydrates and cleanses to regulate pH to relieve unwanted discharge and odor while balancing the microbial flora. Pure Refresh Intimate Moisturizer – infused with seven layers of hyaluronic acid and ectoin – helps alleviate dehydration to reduce itching, burning and discomfort while strengthening the vaginal skin barrier.

To tighten unwanted sagging around jowls and deep wrinkles due to collagen loss from the aging process, Lift-TOX Triple Powered Define + Firm Serum is a two-in-one anti-aging solution for face, neck, and décolleté clinically proven to firm skin in 15 minutes. It also works to smooth wrinkles, define and sculpt cheekbones, and tighten the décolleté area. Its hero ingredient, rBoost NAD+ technology, energizes and restores skin cells for a visibly tighter, smoother, more sculpted appearance. The formula is powered by a cooling metal applicator that lifts, de-puffs and promotes lymphatic drainage for instant contour.

“Our primary focus is on results and not so much on trend,” said Folce. “We’re constantly on the hunt for real ingredient breakthroughs, specifically those that address skin cell aging and the loss of collagen.”

One of its bestsellers, SkinRecovery Ultra Strength Pain Therapy Cream, has elicited the most visceral feedback. The quick-absorbing pain cream formulated with arnica, magnesium, menthol and ginger provides temporary relief from minor muscle, joint aches, pains, sprains and cramps.

“Living with pain, something that gets more and more likely with age, causes so many negative emotional side effects,” said Folce. “The positive feedback about this product, with so many telling me how it changed their life, is so deeply gratifying.”

New product launches this month include Make It Vanish Power Cream, powered by cutting edge Erase Complex to help blur the look of spider veins and broken capillaries. Clinically approved that 100% of people saw improvement, firmer looking skin in 15 minutes, and more even skin tone within 7 days.”. Universal Hypochlorous Acid Spray calms redness, breakouts, and inflammation on the fly with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory benefits.

A recent standout, Retinol + Ferulic Face & Body Crème, targets early to advanced signs of aging including sagging, loss of volume, wrinkles, dullness, crepey skin, and uneven tone.

With longevity’s major movement in beauty, Folce says brands like Nakery are helping fill a “big void” in the industry as it continues its shift to a more pro-aging one with body-positive messaging.

“I love this focus on longevity,” she said. “It’s less about ‘anti-aging’ and so much more about living your best and healthiest life at whatever age you are.”

Read more about longevity in our May 2026 issue of Happi.